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A phantom presence haunts a community college classroom
April 13, 2006 A scene from 'Phantom of the Opera.' Raising your voice as a much-revered 19th-century opera singer can also raise the stakes of acting on stage. Meet Marie Danvers, who for the past year has been known as Christine Daae every time the thick curtains, rimmed with stage dust, part on the classic show "Phantom of the Opera." Touring with a Broadway show, she's been leaving haunting memories of Christine in Houston , Atlanta , Denver and even Schenectady , playing each location for a month. Her soulful voice and acting are making an imprint on audiences. That richness pays off for her students. Danvers is an adjunct professor of theater at Suffolk Community College , where last year she made her directorial debut in a student production of "The Fantasticks." Producing that show with her students was "better than any standing ovation," Danvers said. "It was about them, watching them grow." Danvers , a member of both Actors Equity and the Faculty Association of Suffolk CC (led by Ellen Schuler Mauk), is herself a proud graduate of the college. Years of piling on makeup and pulling brocaded costumes over her head are the experiences she brings to the classroom. "It's really important that you have to have performed to understand the mind of a kid who has a dream," she said. Insights Singing the same songs night after night used to be difficult. "I'd get bored," said Danvers . "But when you mature, you 'Zen' into each moment ... With each song you have to try to find each moment, using singing, acting and emotion. My goal is to have one whole song with all my moments in place." For the coveted Phantom role,"I auditioned nine times in seven years on Broadway," Danvers said. She cherishes Christine, who "grows up during the course of this show." The phantom tries to lure Christine, a young opera singer, into his world of seclusion while teaching her to sing. When visiting her father's mausoleum for guidance, she plies the emotional song, "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" with sweet, painful longing. "Every single person in the audience has lost someone," Danvers said. "I sing it for them." Teaching can be like singing in that sense. Charlie Wittreich, Suffolk CC theater director, said, "You have to be able to do whatever you're teaching." Faculty work summers and even during the school years at local and regional theaters, including the Long Island Shakespeare Festival, created by the college's theater department. Danvers started singing with her parents in nightclubs at age 15, then acted in plays. From Suffolk CC she went on to Oklahoma City University on a dance scholarship. But singing was already a glory she couldn't deny, so she sang opera and won a National Association of Teachers of Singing Artists award. While on the road, Danvers is traveling with her husband, actor Robert Gallagher, who has performed in "Les Miserables" and worked for Suffolk CC's theater program doing voice work with students. Their daughter Karina travels with them, perhaps waiting for her own cue. — Liza Frenette |
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